Seating and retrieving tool for wear and protective bushings in casing during rotary drilling operations



Oct. 21, 1969 CASTILLE AND RETRIEVING TOOL FOR WEAR AND P 3,473,608 ROTECTIVE BUSHINGS SEATING IN CASING DURING ROTARY DRILLING OPERATIONS Filed Feb. 19, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 M R ll 8 m T M m E f. V w mm n c m w m W .mg 0 Mum ATTORNEYS 3,473,608 AND PROTECTIVE BUSHINGS ING OPERATIONS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 O 21, 1969 l. CASTILLE SEATING AND RETRIEVING TOOL O WEAR IN CASING DURING R0 Y DRILL Filed Feb. 19. 1968 h n m C 6 6 Q.

INV EN TOR Magda nave! Willa 6' Mammy 14 TTOR NE YS 3 473 608 AND RETRHEV ING TOOL FOR WEAR AND PROTECTIVE BUSHINGS IN CASING DUR- ING ROTARY DRILLING OPERATIONS Ignace Castille, PO. Box 2697, Lafayette, La. 70501 Filed Feb. 19, 1968, Ser. No. 706,598 Int. (II. 122% 23/04 U5. Ci. 166-85 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A well tool for seating and retrieving wear and protective bushings which have a continuous internal annual groove therein to enable the well tool to quickly and easily insert the bushing into and remove it from a tubular member such as a well casing during rotary drilling operations.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS The present invention shows the preferred embodiment of the Well tool for positioning a wear and protective bushing within and removal from a well casing, the specific form of Wear and protective bushing being disclosed and claimed in my copending application Ser. No. 706,599 filed on Feb. 19, 1968 for Bushing for Casing During Rotary Drilling Operations.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention The present invention relates to a well tool which is constructed and arranged to engage a bearing of a particular configuration and seat it within casing for use during rotary drilling operations, and to periodically retrive the bushing from the well casing during rotary drilling operations, as may be desired.

Decription of the prior art Various well tools have been proposed for seating various types of bearings within casing; however, such devices have, in some instances, been constructed and arranged so that they may be diflicult to disconnect from the bearing after it has been positioned within the casing during well drilling operations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention overcomes the above problems in that it is constructed and arranged so that it may positively engage and lock with a bushing to seat the bushing within the well casing. Also, the tool is constructed so that the engaging lugs may be positively disengaged from the bushing after it has been seated within the casing so that the Seating tool may then be withdrawn from the well bore to thereafter continue normal drilling operation procedure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a sectional view partly in elevation showing the tool of the present invention engaged with a bushing, when the bushing is in seated position in the casing, or tubular member in a Well bore;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view partly in elevation showing the relationship of the components of the tool when the engaging means has been retracted within the well tool body and also illustrates the relationship of the well tool to the bushing, just as the bushing is seated in the well casing and the tool disengaged therefrom;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view on line 3--3 of FIG. 2 showing in greater detail the arrangement of the slots within the body and the engaging means positioned States Patent 3,473,603 Patented Oct. 21, 1969 therein, with the spring means which normally urges the engaging means outwardly relative to the body; and

FIG, 4 is a sectional view on line 4-4 of FIG. 1, partly in elevation, showing the means for mounting the engaging means within the well tool body and the projection on the lower end thereof which is adapted to be engaged by the piston rod for retraction of the engaging means. Thi view also shows in greater detail the removable centering blocks or members for aiding in centering the well tool body within the bushing.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Attention is first directed to FIG. 1 of the drawings wherein the tool of the present invention is referred to generally by the numeral 10. The tool includes a body 11 having an axial bore 13 which extends from the upper end 12 of the body 11 to the position indicated by the numeral 14. The lower end of the body is provided with threads 15 for engagement, when desired, with the drill ipe represented at 16 as will be described in greater detail hereinafter.

Internal threads 17 are provided within the bore 13 adjacent the upper end 12 of the body 11 for engaging with the sub or pipe or kelly to enable the body 11 to be lowered internally into the casing C which extends downwardly into the well bore (not shown).

A piston 19 is mounted within the axial bore 13 from which depends the piston rod 20 as shown in FIG. 1. It will be noted that the axial bore 13 is reduced in diameter, for a portion of its longitudinal extent adjacent the lower end of bore 13, as illustrated at 13a, thereby providing a shoulder 13b for receiving the spring 21 which rests on the shulder 13b and abuts the neither side 13c of the piston means 19 to normally urge it upwardly within the axial bore 13.

If desired, suitable stop means may be provided to limit the upward travel of the piston, and as shown in the drawings, such stop means is in the form of the snap ring 23 which is seated within the groove 24 formed within the axial bore 13 so as to abut the upper end of the piston as shown in FIG. 1 and thereby limit its upward travel.

A plurality of circumferentially spaced, longitudinally extending slots 25 is provided in the body 11, and as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, three of such slots 25 are illustrated as extending radially in the body 11 in which slot means are received the lug means 26. The lug means 26 are each mounted on the pins 27 which in turn are carried within their respective bores 28 formed in the body 11. The pins 27 may be retained in the bores 28 by any suitable means and accommodate pivotal movement of the lug means 26 within the slots 25 so that lug means 26 may extend outwardly radially relative to the body 11 as shown in FIG. 1 or may be withdrawn into the slots 25 as shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings.

It will be noted that the lower end of the lug means 26 is provided with an inwardly extending projection 26a which forms a surface 26b whereby the lower end 20a of the piston rod 20 which abuts thereagainst moves the lug means 26 inwardly when the piston means 19 is forced downwardly within the axial bore 13 as illustrated in FIG. 2 of the drawings.

The other end of the lug means 26 is provided with an outwardly extending projection as shown at 26c, thereby providing a surface 26d which conforms with the surface 26e of the internal annular groove 30 formed Within the bushing 31.

Spring means 32 are provided between the body 11 and the lug means 26 as illustrated in FIG. 1 to tend to normally urge the lug means 26 outwardly relative to the body 11. The spring means 32 may be secured by any suitable means at one end 33 to the body 11 and may be secured to the lug means by any suitable means, and as shown, is received within the bore 34 which is of a suitable size to receive the other end 35 of the spring 32 and secured therewith by any suitable means such as welding or the like if necessary to hold the spring 32 in position.

The lower portion of each slot is provided with a member 40 which has a surface 41 and a surface 42 thereon which is adapted to abut the conforming surfaces 26e and 26 on the lug means 26 when the lug means 26 is moved outwardly into engaging position with the annular internal groove 30 as shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings. The surfaces 41 and 42 when abutting the surfaces 26e' and 26), respectively, form an additional support for the lug means 26 while carrying the bushing 31 into the casing C or retrieving the bushing 31 from the casing C.

As shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings, an annular skirt 45 is secured to the body 11 adjacent the upper end thereof but spaced therefrom a suitable distance to aid in positioning the bushing 31 within the casing C. The skirt 45 is provided with a collar portion 46 which conformably fits about the upper end of the body 11 as shown in FIG. 1 and is provided with suitable means such as the circumferentially spaced bolts 47 which extend therethrough and engage in the groove 48 in the upper end of the body 11 to retain the skirt 45 in position. This also permits removal of the skirt 45 from the upper end of the body 11 when desired.

The bushing 31 is installed in the casing C to inhibit damage thereto during rotary drilling operations, and it may be desirable, from time to time during rotary drilling operations, to remove the bushing 31 and insert a plug in order to test the casing C and blow-out preventer for leaks.

The well tool of the present invention is connected to the kelly or other suitable pipe whereby it may be lowered into the well casing. The bushing 31 may be positioned on the well tool 11 by telescoping it over the lower end of the body 11 and over the threads and moving it longitudinally along the body until the lug means 26 engages in the slots as shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings. Thereafter, the well tool and engaged bushing 31 are lowered into the well casing.

To aid in additionally centering the body 11 relative to the bushing 31, suitable centering blocks as illustrated at 50 are provided at circumferentially spaced positions on the body 11 and extending longitudinally thereof. The bodies or members 50 may be positioned on the body 11 by any suitable means such as Allen screws 51 whereby various size members 50 may be used depending upon the size of the casing C and the bushing 31 to be inserted therein. It can be appreciated that in some instances no centering members 50 will be employed, particularly where the internal diameter of the bushing 31 is relatively close to the outer diameter of the largest portion of the body 11, which largest portion as shown is adjacent the lug means 26 as shown in the drawings.

After the body 11 and bushing 31 are engaged as shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings, the body 11 is lowered into the casing C by the lowering mechanism at the well site which is normally used during drilling operations. When the bushing 31 lands on the shoulder 31a formed in the casing C, it is then desirable to disengage the body 11 from the bushing 31 so that the body 11 may be withdrawn from the casing C to permit rotary drilling operations to be conducted.

In order to accomplish this, fluid pressure is supplied to the axial longitudinally extending bore 13 to the top of piston means 19, and since seal means 13b is provided between the piston means 19 and axial bore 13, the fluid pressure moves the piston means 19 downwardly against the spring 21, thereby causing the piston rod 20, at its lower end 20a, to move the projection 26a and thereby pivot the lug means 26 about the pivot pin 27 and inwardly into the slot 25 against the pressure of the spring 32, as shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings.

When in this position, the tool and bushing are in the positions shown in FIG. 2 of the drawings and the tool may be lowered slightly so that the lower end 45a of skirt 45 abuts the upper end of the bushing 31 to retain it in position while bolt means 59' are threadedly engaged through the flange 51' to seat in the groove 52 formed on the external periphery of the bushing 31 as illustrated in FIG. 1 of the drawings.

While maintaining fluid pressure on the piston 19 to retain the lug means 26 retracted into their respective recesses 25, the invention 10 may be withdrawn from the casing C. The upper portion of the casing C, where the bushing 31 is positioned, is then protected against any damage by abutting against the drill bit or by engagement with the rotating drill string which might otherwise damage the portion of the casing C in the vicinity of the bushing 31.

Normally, during drilling operations, the devices termed blow-out preventers are stacked on top of the flange 51. a part of such blow-out preventer stack being represented in dotted line on the flange 51' in FIG. 1 of the drawings.

It may be desirable from time to time to test the blowout preventers and the casing C for leaks, and when this is done, it is desirable to remove the bushing 31 from its position in the casing C. To accomplish this, drilling operations are momentarily stopped, and the drill string broken in a manner well known in the art and held in the rotary table in a manner well known in the art. The body 11 may be threadedly secured at its upper end to the kelly, or other pipe, and its lower end connected to the drill string 16 and then lowered into the well bore so as to engage the lug means 26 within the annular groove 3ll. The bolts 50' may be withdrawn from the groove 52 and the bushing 31 thereupon removed from the casing C. A test plug, of well-known construction, can then be put in place of the bushing 31 and lowered into the casing C and a test conducted in the well-known manner to determine whether or not there is any leak in the blow-out preventer stack or casing C. If no leak is indicated, the test plug is removed and the bushing 31 then reinserted into the casing C in the manner as previously described hereinabove.

Particular attention is drawn to the construction and arrangement of the present tool in that it permits a well tool and a bushing to be positively locked or engaged together while the bushing is being inserted within the casing C in the well bore, and also by reason of the skirt 45, enables the tool to hold the bushing 31 in place as it is secured in position by the bolt means 59'. Thereafter, the well tool may be withdrawn from the bushing to enable rotary operations to begin, if the bushing 31 is being initially installed, or if it is removed for test purposes as described above, the drilling operations may be continued after the bushing 31 has been reinserted within the casing C.

The surfaces on the lug means 26 are provided to accomplish as pecific function as noted hereinabove of engaging with the recess 30 by means of the projection 260. or of being engaged and retracting the lug means 26 by the piston rod 20, or serving as a reinforcing back-up in co-operation with the surfaces 41 and 42 arranged at the lower portion of each slot means 25.

The foregoing disclosure and description of the invention are illustrative and explanatory thereof, and various changes in the size, shape, and materials as Well as in the details of the illustrated construction may be made within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

-1 claim:

1. A well tool for seating and retrieving a wear and protective bushing having a continuous internal annular groove in and removing from a tubular member such as a well casing comprising:

(a) a body having threads on the lower end thereof and on the upper end thereof;

(b) said body having an axial bore extending at least partially longitudinally thereof from said upper end;

(c) piston means mounted for movement within said bore;

(d) a piston rod depending from said piston means within the bore;

(e) said body having circumferentially spaced, l0ngitu dinally extending slots which communicate with the axial bore;

(f) lug means pivotally mounted in each of said slots;

(g) said lug means including a projection adjacent the lower end which extends into the axial bore beneatth said piston rod;

(h) said lug means including a projection adjacent the upper end thereof for engaging in the continuous annular groove of the bushing when it is to be inserted into and removed from the casing;

(i) spring means abutting each of said lug means and normally tending to urge them outwardly of said body;

(j) spring means abutting said piston means to normally tend to urge said piston rod upwardly within said body; and

(k) seal means between said piston means and body whereby fiuid pressure within the upper end of said body and in the axial bore urges said piston rod downwardly to retract said lug means within each of said slots in said body.

2. The well tool of claim 1 including an annular skirt secured to said body and projecting radially therefrom adjacent, but spaced from, the upper end of said body for aiding in positioning the bushing in the well casing.

3. The well tool of claim 1 including a plurality of circumferentially spaced, longitudinally extending members removably secured to said body for aiding in centering said body within the bushing.

4. The invention of claim 1 wherein said spring means abutting said lug means is secured at one end to said body and at its other end is secured within a recess in said lug means.

References Qited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,210,815 8/1940 Linney 166-206 2,924,278 2/1960 Garrett et al. 166-214 3,120,270 2/1964 McCoy 166243 3,166,128 1/1965 Myers 166214 3,225,833 12/1965 Parkhurst et al. 166-207 JAMES A. LEPPINK, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 166-212; 251-3l9 

